


A Little Pick-Me-Up

by CastleSL



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Barista Lance (Voltron), Dweeb Shiro, Holiday Fic Exchange, Keith's a little shit, M/M, Platonic Sheith, Shance_Support_Squad, Shiro gets very flustered over compliments, Vampire Shiro (Voltron), Vampires, Varkon and Roll are briefly mentioned but I still wanted them in this fic, Wingman!Keith, amorremanet, platonic klance, shance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 11:38:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13212945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CastleSL/pseuds/CastleSL
Summary: Lance and Keith work the graveyard shift at Altea Cafe, which usually means a night full of boring hours and an occasional sleep deprived zombie. However, a mysterious stranger comes in looking lost and confused, but more than willing to listen to Lance's corny lines. So maybe it's not too bad.





	A Little Pick-Me-Up

**Author's Note:**

  * For [amorremanet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/amorremanet/gifts).



> This is my Holiday Fic Exchange gift for the lovely Amorremanet from the Shance Support Squad!! Writing this was very fun and introduced me to a world of putting multiple AU's into one story. I hope you like this Kassie and I hope everyone else enjoys it as well! 
> 
> Also, Happy New Year everyone! May 2018 be kind to all of you <3

Working the graveyard shift at a twenty four hour coffee shop was like stepping into an alternate dimension where nothing made sense and you didn’t really know what your body was doing half the time. You could blink and suddenly be halfway across the room without even remembering why you wanted to move in the first place. Lance knew from personal experience that working the graveyard shift while also taking classes during the afternoon was also like stepping into an alternate dimension, only this dimension was on fire and the only relief was a constant consumption of coffee. 

Lance sighed and flipped another page in his textbook, leaning against the front counter and mindlessly tapping his foot on the dull linoleum. Most nights he could get through full chapters without even looking up, especially during the week. The most common customers came between eleven and midnight, but after that they were slim to none. Rolo was passed out in the back room, sleeping on the bulk packages of napkins until one of his coworkers kicked him. Lance didn’t mind Rolo sleeping. It was far better than listening to him blast his music at full volume or talk with his girlfriend. 

Lance pulled one of the spare rags from behind the counter and balled it up before he chucked it at Keith’s head. It smacked him in the temple and fell innocently to the floor as Keith turned to glare at his coworker. 

“Dude, you’ve been wiping down the same table for an hour. At least move on to another one.” Lance suggested and lifted a hand up for Keith to toss the rag back. The shorter man rolled his eyes and dragged his feet off the table so he could bend down and pick up the piece of cloth. He barely even looked as he flung it in Lance’s general direction. 

“Right, because we’re so busy. Gotta make sure all the tables are spotless for our countless customers.” Keith drawled even when he stood up and headed for the next table over. The manager, Varkon, had a habit of casually walking by the windows after a night of drinking to see if the employees were being productive. It made him look good to rat out someone who wasn’t upholding company policies at three in the morning, even when he himself barely stayed at the shop for a full shift. Lance didn’t mind all that much. The pay was decent and he could get some studying in while waiting for the odd customer who was too tired to order anything other than a plain coffee. Plus, Lance was a night owl, one of the only things he and Keith had in common. They both liked being awake at night rather than the day, though Keith was the lucky dropout who didn’t have classes like Lance did. While Keith could sleep from sunrise to sundown, Lance could only sleep from about eight in the morning until two before he’d have to get up and go to his afternoon classes at the Altea Beauty Academy. Being a beautician wasn’t the best paying job in the world, but Lance had much more potential in the beauty industry than he did making lattes. 

The barista sighed and shut his book. He’d gone over the same chapter twice and if it wasn’t sticking now, going over it again for another hour was not going to help him. Lance leaned further over the counter and watched as Keith alternated between half heartedly wiping down the table and scrolling through his phone. 

“Ten bucks the next person to walk through the door is either drunk or too tired to actually look at the menu.” It was a running joke between the two workers that at least one person a night ordered an iced frappuccino without even bothering to look at their menu. Granted, they were usually too out of it to realize, but it was still funny to watch the customer go cross-eyed trying to figure out their back up order. Keith glanced up with a grin, locked his phone and pocketed it. 

“Twenty bucks the next person is neither.” He said and slapped the still barely-used rag over his shoulder before walking past Lance to head into the back. “I’m going for my break, I’ll be back in a half hour.” He called, though they both knew that the half hour rule meant nothing. There was nothing that needed to be done that Keith hadn’t already finished, and if Lance needed any help he could just kick Rolo awake. 

“Why? Working too hard, buddy?” Lance cooed and watched through the door as Keith hung up his apron and slid his bright as hell jacket on. Lance always teased him about never needing reflector tape when he was out near the street. Keith stuck his head through the door.

“It’s in my contract.” He replied with a deadpan stare which only made Lance roll his eyes. 

“Yeah, but you can get a full eight hours after your shift.” Keith shrugged. 

“Not my fault you wanna be a face magician.” If there was ever something Lance was annoyed with more than anything it was when people made fun of his chosen profession. The first time Keith heard that Lance as going to beauty school he’d laughed. Granted, it was more of a chuckle, but Lance had gone off on him and that had led to a very rough first two months working together. They couldn’t work for more than twenty minutes without getting into some petty squabble. Poor Rolo had to be the mediator or else they would have killed each other. Now, however, they were much more amiable and Lance knew that Keith didn’t think less of him for his passion and any time he made fun of the name is was meant to be friendly banter. That didn’t stop Lance from mocking Keith on the way out.

“I’d need to be a magician to fix your face.” Lance heard the back door open and close, then he slumped against the counter again, fingers drumming a random bat from a mixture of songs he couldn’t name. He could try to work on his designs. He was the only employee, day or night shift, who could make the small designs in the latte foam. He could only do hearts and a fancy leaf if he was lucky, but Hunk had challenged him to make a perfect holly design by December and Lance was anything but a quitter. He’d already gone through at least twenty drinks with squiggly images that looked more like cursive than a leaf, but he was getting better. However, practicing meant making a whole drink in the first place and Lance did not feel like making a latte no one was going to touch let alone drink. So, Lance decided that tonight would be a nap-standing-up kind of night and settled in. 

\-----

Another twenty minutes passed and Lance had sat down behind the counter, pulling a stray string off the edge of his apron and seriously considering joining Rolo on the napkin bed. The only thing stopping him was that Keith still wasn’t back. He was going to come back soon, he never stayed out more than an hour, but it still sucked that Lance was left alone without another person to suffer with. 

The barista's head snapped up when the bell tinged, signalling the rare cryptid they called a customer coming in for a nightly fix. Lance heard the sound of shuffling feet that stuttered and stilled before the door to the coffee shop closed with a second clink of the bell and he grinned. Definitely a drunk or poor sleep deprived soul. Lance could practically feel the twenty dollar bill that would be in his wallet at the end of his shift and quickly got to his feet. 

“Hello! Welcome to Altea cafe… oh.” Lance blinked. Definitely not a drunk. For one, the guy was fit, built like a tank fit. He wore a tight black shirt and jeans and holy hell who told him that was legal? The black and grey vest did nothing to his muscles, and even if it did, the guys face was stunning enough to make Lance’s knees weak. But no matter how beautiful he was. He was not drunk, and he looked way too curious to be sleep deprived, which meant instead gaining ten dollars, Lance was out of twenty. The man seemed surprised to see Lance behind the counter, but he walked up with a shy smile. 

“Hi, I’m-” He glanced behind Lance, “I’m sorry” He squinted at Lance’s scuffed up nametag, “Lance, but is Keith here? He’s a friend of mine. I thought he said he worked here.” Lance tried not to be too disappointed or offended. How could Keith know a living gladiator and not introduce him to Lance? What kind of a friend was he? Lance shook his head. 

“No, you’ve got it right, but Mister I-get-eight-hours-and-am-still-grumpy went on break twenty minutes ago.” He leaned his elbows on the counter and offered a wink. “I, however, am right here, hot stuff.” The blush that erupts across the man’s face was award worthy. It takes Lance off guard because usually stunning people who get hit with his pickup lines would either roll their eyes or awkwardly change topic. This guy however was acting like he’d never even gotten a wink thrown his way, which, in Lance’s humble opinion, was a crime. 

“Oh! Oh, okay, that’s- that’s great. Really… okay.” Keith’s mystery friend stumbled over his words, but he was still smiling shyly, so Lance took it as a good sign. 

“So, what can I get for you?”

“What?”

“I’m assuming you’d like something? I mean, it is a coffee shop and anyone who’s planning to hangout at this hour needs a boost.” Lance explained and Shiro blinked again before his eyes widened in understanding. 

“Oh! Right, coffee. I can… right.” Lance was going to die. How could one man be so hot and yet so cute at the same time? “Um, can I get,” Shiro looked at the menu hanging behind Lance like he’d never even heard of half the items listed. “I’ll just- a coffee with- uh..” Lance decided to take pity on him. 

“Do you like sweet things? Besides me, of course.” He asked and Shiro looked slightly grateful for the more direct question, even if the second part made him stutter a bit. 

“I’m more of a savory kind of guy. But I don’t dislike it?” It had been a long time since Shiro had needed to answer any of these questions. 

“Alright, and do you like cream, milk, neither?”

“I think… Neither? I don’t really drink milk or anything.”

“And yet you look like you could snap me in half, damn.” Lance gave a low whistle of approval and Shiro scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. “Okay, you’re not really sure about coffee, so how about I fix you a chai tea with a dash of sugar? See how you like it?” Mystery Man nodded in agreement though part of Lance knew he had little to no clue what he was getting. “Perfect, and can I get a name? Or should I just put Mysterious Stranger of the night?” Lance asked teasingly with a flirty smile, satisfied when the blush came back. 

“It’s Shiro.” Lance set off making the drink while Shiro watched him with curious eyes. 

“I’ve never seen you around here before. Did you just move into town?” Lance asked as he worked, figuring small talk was better than a stiff silence. 

“No, I just don’t go out much. But Keith insisted I should get out of my house more and then-”

“He stood you up?” Lance supplied for him and Shiro nodded his head. 

“Yeah. But I get to talk to you, so it’s not so bad.” Lance nearly dropped the cup in his hands when he looked up to see Shiro smiling at him shyly. 

“W-well, I’m glad to be of service!” Lance ducked his head and finished making the drink before he spilled it on himself. When he returned with the tea, Shiro was digging through his pockets for some money. Lance coughed to get his attention. 

“First drink is on the house.” Shiro blinked at him like he’s grown a second head. “I’m serious. You might not even like it and why would I make you pay for a drink I basically chose for you?” It was sound logic, but Shiro still looked unsure. “Tell you what, you take the drink and figure out what you like, then come back pay for a drink you actually want.” Lance smiled encouragingly and, after another moment of contemplation, Shiro nodded with a smile of his own. 

“Is this just your plan to get me to come back?” He asked. Now that he wasn’t floundering to make sense of something out of his element Shiro was gaining some confidence, which only made Lance’s smile turn into a smirk. 

“Are you saying that you wouldn’t come back to see me anyway?” Shiro’s cheeks turned pink and he didn’t answer. He just reached out a hand to take the drink, but instead of his fingers wrapping around the cup Lance grabbed his hand instead. The taller man tensed for a minute before he heard Lance speak. 

“Holy shit… Do you get these done somewhere?” Shiro could have sworn he saw stars in Lance’s eyes as he looked at Shiro’s nails. Black, pink, yellow and purple paint was blotched together to create a galaxy effect, but what caught Lance’s attention were the intricate white designs that were painted over the base. Practiced swipes of white created small solar systems and planets, a shooting star streaked across Shiro’s thumb while saturn and its rings rested at the center of his pointer finger. It was like looking at the professional photos of nail art, the kind that were used in comparisons between what the nail was supposed to look like and what the nail actually turned out to be. 

“Uh.. No. I did them myself.” Lance’s jaw went slack and he looked up at Shiro with wide eyes. He was holding his hand like it was a prized jewel and if he didn’t handle it with the most delicate touch, nevermind that the hand was attached to a very flustered customer. 

“With what, _magic?_ ” Shiro shook his head no. “Then you better be the owner of a nail salon because damn these things look printed.” 

“Thanks? I’ve uh... had a long time to practice.” Shiro replied and reached his free hand up to scratch the back of his neck sheepishly. He wasn’t used to so much attention from someone and definitely not someone who had no reservations about flirting or grabbing someone’s hand. 

“Um, Lance?” Shiro asked quietly and wiggled his fingers to get the man’s attention. “Can I have my hand back?” Lance’s head snapped up and he blinked before he dropped Shiro’s hand like he’d been burned.

“Sorry! Sorry, I- Jeez, I don’t know what got into me.” Lance laughed nervously and Shiro was left thinking that Lance was far too adorable for his own good. “I’ll uh, I’ll let you go.” 

“You already did.” Shiro lifted up his, newly freed, hand and wiggled it to show that he had, indeed, been let go. Lance looked between Shiro’s face and his hand a few times and then slapped a hand over his own mouth to cover up a snort. 

“Oh my god, that- that was _bad_.” He giggled and finally handed over the tea before he ended up spilling it. “Ripped, shy, and a terrible sense of humor. There is no way you can be human.” Lance was too busy swooning to see Shiro’s grip on his coffee tighten and his eyes go a little wide. “Nope, too perfect. You’re some kind of supernatural being.” 

“Right, haha that’s me.” Shiro glanced back at the front door and paused when he caught sight of a familiar red jacket. “I better go, Keith’s waiting for me… out there.” Shiro pursed his lips in confusion and missed the way Lance took the opportunity to look him up and down. 

“If you must. Just leave me here. All alone.” Never one to miss a dramatic moment, Lance draped himself over the counter with a melancholic sigh. Shiro couldn’t help but laugh at the antics, and as he smiled wide Lance could have sworn he saw one of his teeth looked… sharper than the rest. It was only a glimpse though and the next second Shiro was composing himself. 

“I’ll bring Keith back so you won’t be lonely.” He promised and then started to turn towards the door.

“I’d rather you just bring yourself back, Magic Man.” Lance called after him as he picked himself up off the counter. By random chance, Lance’s eyes drifted downward and he just barely held in a low whistle at the way Shiro’s jeans truly accentuated his assets. “I hate to see you go, but I love to watch you leave.” He whispered under his breath, barely audible, but he froze when Shiro stopped and glanced back at him. 

“Well, if you love it so much, then I’ll definitely have to come back.” Lance’s face went crimson and he waited until Shiro was safely out the door to crouch behind the counter and silently scream into his apron. 

Shiro just tried to hold in his own embarrassment until he was outside in the cold night air, where he didn’t have flirty baristas making him act completely inappropriately. There was no reason for him to have responded to that last comment, not when Lance whispered it specifically so Shiro _wouldn’t_ hear it. But then again, it was absolutely worth seeing Lance look so flustered. Shiro looked up when he heard Keith clear his throat. 

“I thought we agreed to meet outside.” Keith said, frowning at Shiro while he leaned back against the street light in front of the shop that refused to stop flickering.

“No, you said _inside_.” Shrio corrected and pointed at the window of the coffee shop. Usually, Keith would keep fighting him until Shiro had indefinitely proven himself right or he was too tired to argue, but this time Keith let the topic drop and pointed to the cup currently keeping Shiro’s palm toasty. 

“And you ordered coffee even though I wasn’t in there? Shiro, you don’t drink coffee.” Shiro held up the drink like it would explain everything. Keith rolled his eyes and with that they started to walk down the street. 

“Actually it’s a chai tea, Lance said-” 

“Lance? Lance made you tea?” He let out a burst of laughter when Shiro shoved him by the arm. The larger man kept his eyes forward and refused to even glance at his best friend as they continued to walk down the street. That is until Keith spoke up again. “So, what did you think?” Shiro slowed his pace and lifted up his flesh hand to look at his own fingernails.

“He liked my nail polish.” He said and Keith had known Shiro too long to not catch the disbelief in his voice. Shiro had always had reservations about how he looked and what he did to help the days go by. He’d started to paint his own nails in a time when a man with nail polish on would have been considered insane. Shiro was hesitant about being around people as it was, so meeting someone who actually appreciated Shiro’s interests meant a lot. Even if Keith hadn’t known Shiro for his whole life, the dopey smile gave it away.

“And he didn’t mention my arm either, or my scars, or my hair. He treated me so… normal.” That was another one of Shiro’ hangups. People saw scars and automatically thought ‘danger’ without even knowing the person. Not that Shiro didn’t have the potential to be dangerous, but he wouldn’t hurt a fly if he could help it. 

“Lance isn’t the type to call that stuff out. He’s a materialistic shit, but he wouldn’t go and make a scene out of your appearance.” He probably wouldn’t even bother to ask Keith about it when he got back. He’d just gush about Keith’s best friend while Keith suffered for the rest of his shift. 

“He said my nails looked printed. He said they looked like I used magic.” Shiro went back to the previous topic, still unbelieving that Lance would be so impressed. Keith shot Shiro a sideways glance. 

“Aaaaand you’re smitten.” Keith shook his head and shoved his hands into his pockets. “Because he liked your nails. I should have seen it coming.” He smirked while Shiro looked at him in suspicion. 

“You look smug.” 

“Me? Not at all. Come on, I only have a half an hour for break and then Lance is gonna pitch a fit.” They continued to walk for a while before Keith took the tea from Shiro, ignoring the man’s weak “Hey…” Even when Keith got a flash of fangs he didn’t stop walking. 

“You think he’s cute, don’t you.” Shiro opened and closed his mouth to deny it, but he eventually sighed and leaned his head back to look up at the sky.

“How can you not?” Lance was loud and flirtatious and probably stuck his foot in his mouth more often than not, but he was so damn endearing. 

“Because I’ve worked with him for almost six months and I’ve seen him when he gets out of class late without getting dinner.” Keith answered honestly and took a sip of the tea. “But what did I tell you? Don’t regret coming to meet me now, do you?” He looked up at Shiro expectantly.

“I… It wasn’t awful. It was pretty eventful.” Compared to Shiro’s usual nights of staying at his house with Netflix and a library full of books that he’d read seven times over. Keith grinned. 

“So you think you might come out more often?” The younger man had been trying to get Shiro to be more social for almost a year now, it had taken him tricking Shiro to come to his workplace and meet his flirty coworker just to convince him it was worth coming out every once in a while. 

“Yeah. Maybe I will.” Shiro said softly, that same dopey smile on his face as he thought about a flirty smile and deep blue eyes.


End file.
